Not polite to stare
by Hybrid Fantasy
Summary: In which Vincent and Youffie try to see if Cloud has or not hormones. "What part do you want to start with first, sweeping Tifa of her feet or the baby-making? I would recommend the second alternative since you look like you could use some sex.”


He didn't like it. Not one bit.

He found it disturbing, annoying, and disrespectful not only towards himself but also towards her. He considered it to be just a simple gesture of adventurous angst, life-stealing lust and overreacted obsession. He knew it was fucking nerve-racking, low self esteemed and unpleasant as hell.

He hated it when Tifa acted like this towards any kind of man other than himself.

He continued to gaze towards her lean figure over the room assuring his friend, Vincent (who by the way knew what was going on but was way to cooled down and calm to react to anything that would make him show emotions *cough*ice-cube*cough* not that there was something that could) that he did this only to be on the safe side since just recently there had been signs of violence at Seven Heaven.

"Violence between men." Vincent Valentino stated taking a long zip from his red wine. "Tifa can stay out of trouble, I'm sure of that."

"So am I. I just don't want her caught in between men-problems." Cloud snorted annoyed defending himself quickly.

"C'mon Cloud, we all know what kind of 'men-problems' you want Tifa to stay out of." A sweet laugh echoed in his ear as Yuffie took a seat near Vincent laying, in the meantime, a bowl of peanuts and dried fruit on the table. "Just admit it in this life that you like her. End of all your problems. Mine as well, actually. I'm tired of talking to ya when the only you can do is think 'bout how you can get into Tifa's pants." Yuffie smiled victoriously.

"Jeez, Yuffie, grow up!" Cloud complained "I so don't want to do that!"

"You sure do!" She cried back.

"Sure don't!"

"Sure do!"

"Sure don't!"

"Why don't you both grow up, heh? And do us all a favor!" Vince interrupted wisely.

"Yuffie's fault." Cloud blamed.

"Who's the immature now, Strife? My responsible and unbelievably cool self or your girly hormonal-dysfunctional one?"

"Girly? Who the hell are you calling 'girly'?

"You, 'course, since Tifa's more of a man than you are."

"I think she just insulted your manly hood." Vince smirked towards his buddy.

"I think I figured that one for myself, thank you very much." Cloud's voice dripped with irony.

"Aren't we smart?" the brunette teased. "Anyhow, Cloud, I'm not here to make you cry, I'm just here to give you girl to girl advice. You know, like what kind of shampoo to use for volume and shine, what perfume to apply when you're on a hot date or what dress to wear when you want to show more cleavage. Girls stuff." Yuffie cheered happily.

"I so want to stick this fork up your ass right now." Cloud threatened grabbing the closest object on the table.

"First of all, that's not a fork it's a spoon, second, just so you know it is impossible since spoons are not made for that kind of stuff and third it's illegal."

"Not for long. I'll prove all your theories wrong if you don't shut up, Yuffie."

"Gaaawd Cloud, don't take it so personal all the time. I'm just tryin' to clear up the atmosphere up in here, that's all. Everything's too tense."

"I would have asked for your help, but since I didn't, I don't need it. So stay out of my business, Youffie."

"Bitch, much, Cloud?" the girl asked rhetorically as he clashed his teeth together sending several death glares over the table.

"Can you guys please shut it?" Vincent proposed tiredly. "I'm trying to relax while drinking my 47-year old French wine while the only thing I can think of right now is shampoos, spoons and the human anatomy."

"Woah, Vince-love, you seem affected!" Youffie joked. "Now worries, I haven't forgotten you. I'll promise you to help you pick up the perfect hair-care set when where out shopping again! And when we're at it we can always drop by the nail polish store. Heard they got new colors and stuff. Y'know, blue's the new black in everything!"

"I'm starting to understand what Cloud's going trough." Vincent exhaled noisily.

"I sure know how to make you guys livelier, huh?" the young woman smiled cutely.

"Oh screw you, Youffie." Cloud muttered.

"I love you, too, Cloudy!"

"Lord have mercy…" the blond tensed visibly as he gazed towards Tifa with the corner of his eyes just as she seemed to be taking an order from a rather large table surrounded by what seemed to be six half drunk guys with stupid smirks on their pathetic faces. Fuck them too, Cloud though.

"Oh, now I see…" Youffie smiled just as she caught a glimpse of Cloud's ocean blue eyes.

"See what?" Cloud asked almost alarmed.

"You're so cute when you do that!" Yuffie complemented.

"Do what?"

"Act as if you don't care but it's exactly the opposite, really."

"Stop judging, Yuffie."

"When will you ever admit it?" she cried painfully like a little school girl who got a bad grade.

"I have nothing to admit." The young man defended shaking his head.

"You don't do you? Well I think you do. I think you really have something to admit. Don't admit it to me or to Vince, or even to Tifa. Admit it to yourself." She smiled as she saw the blond had no disapproving reaction.

"Have to agree with that." Vincent added sending a short smile towards Youffie who gladly squeezed back his hand underneath the table.

"It's not so hard to act normal, Cloud. And I got to hand it to Tifa, she's maybe the only one beside Marlene and Denzel that can melt that ice surrounding your cold heart. Don't tell me I'm wrong again, 'cause you know as well as I do that I'm not."

"Whatever." Cloud stated defeated as he poured more wine in his own glass. "There's nothing I can do anyways, so case closed."

"Nothing you can do?" the girl asked surprised. "You can do everything as long as you want to. And as a matter of fact, you will. You'll sweep Tifa off her feet, you'll live happily ever after, you'll have lots and lots of kids and you'll be a feminine father! Doesn't it sound great?"

"You can't be serious for more than five minutes in a row, huh?" he sighed.

"I was serious, and I still am. I'm here to help you, Cloud, just like I said before. What part do you want to start with first, sweeping Tifa of her feet or the baby-making? I would recommend the second alternative since you look like you could use some sex."

"One more word coming from you Youffie and I swear I'm getting up." He threatened.

"See?! You're so tense since you haven't had that kind of pleasure lately. No worries, we'll get you laid in no time! You'll see the difference, and best of all you won't be undressing Tifa with your mind any longer as you did up until now, you'll be doing it yourself."

She still had other arguments she would have loved to tease her friend with but, either was she too slow or he too fast, since he got up from his chair and headed behind the bar where only the staff was allowed.

He headed towards one of the two big fridges and got himself a coke. He opened the closet door and grabbed the nearest bag of hot chilly chips. He took a seat on the table as he started to dig into the spicy food listening carefully to the loud music coming from the bar.

He heard so many voices; he heard and smelled the pronounced scent of wine and beer. He had nothing against it but he wasn't much found of it either. He would have been in the same situation either ways, maybe.

He preferred this little corner of Seven Heaven. This was his corner. It wasn't lightened at all; no daylight ever came in here. It was dark and quiet, just as he liked it when he decided to take some spare time just him and his self. The only light that ever managed to make its way trough here was the light coming from the two fridges as you opened the door to get something. Besides that, this was what he called peace and silence. Excluding the noise of music, drunken guys, alcohol and the sound of his hungry stomach, this place was rather quiet, especially before closing time when the night was right at its end.

He could stay here forever, on the table eating chips and drinking coke without anybody ever bothering him. Maybe the only thing he could admit now that was truly hitting his nerves was his own annoying self. How could he be thinking like that? How could he have those feelings towards Tifa nowadays?

Since he defeated Kadaj and found the cure against Geostigma, everything had been flipped upside down. He couldn't concentrate as he used to since Tifa had invaded his mind, he couldn't take as many delivery requests as he once did, not only because he promised Tifa and he kids he would slow down with it, but also because he didn't feel like hitting the road when he was feeling unbelievably well just were he was: at home with the people he most cherished. He wouldn't trade that for the world, this was the best thing that ever happened to him and he wasn't going to let it slip trough his fingers any longer.

He just didn't stand the way he had reacted towards the young woman lately. He had considered himself an ignorant son-of-a-bitch from the beginning but Tifa had made sure that would change. She had transformed him and he was having a hard time recognizing himself. He owed her everything but he didn't know how to repay her since he was ever so tense when she made her appearance behind him, when her tender hands touched his face or when her pleasant smile lightened his day.

He was anxious each time he knew he had to talk to her; he was practicing his speech in his mind each time. He was stressed as hell when he was face to face with her, he wanted to do things to her he would have surely regretted later on, but the temptation was so catchy that he hardly managed to stop himself right in time.

And he was jealous. Each time one of those creeps kept their eyes on her more than they were supposed to he felt anger and fury running trough his whole body. He despised the fact that she didn't do anything to stop them. Maybe because she was too naïve to notice. Either ways, he felt it necessary to kick those guys in the nuts hard and tell them to stay away his Tifa. Yeah. That's what was going to happen if they would even dare to linger their eyes on her from now on. Perverted bastards.

Just as he decided to go back to his table and clear some things out with Yuffie and those punks he ran into her as she probably had to get an order.

"Oh, Cloud, you scared me!" she jumped a little as she saw him coming trough the darkness. "What's going on, you don't look so good…"

"Teef, listen to me." he cut her off. "What do those guys want?"

"What guys?" she asked truly confused.

"The guys from the bar. I don't like them." He stated flatly.

"Oh, you mean Benjamin and his palls?" Tifa let out a laugh. "They're really friendly." She smiled as she walked pass him and opened one of the fridges letting out a strange yellow-bluish light invade the room. "No worries. They're good guys."

"Good guys, bad guys, I want you to stay away from them." He mumbled as he leaned against the wall trying to look careless.

"Cloud, what's gotten into you?" she replied still searching for something in the fridge. "They're inoffensive customers. And I'm a big girl, thank you very much, I can take of myself." she was cut off once again as Cloud dragged her away from the fridge letting the door wide opened as pushed her against the nearest wall.

"Stop being so naïve, Tifa, guys like them only want one thing." He stared into her onyx eyes carefully.

"What's your problem Cloud?" she tensed as he felt his fingers digging into her shoulders.

"I want to keep save, Teef, that's all." He sighed.

"I can do it myself. Now move so I can get back with their order." She spoke annoyed.

"Fine." He stated defeated but he didn't move an inch. "But first let me help you with this." He put in as he started to button up her black short sleeved shirt with a Seven Heaven sign on her right side. "You don't want unwanted eyes on you, now do you, Tifa?" he mumbled as he buttoned the last pin making her look rather ridiculous. "It's not polite to stare, you know." He added once again before getting out of the small room and returning to the normal atmosphere coming from the bar leaving a shocked-stroked Tifa behind to watch him disappeared in pure astonishment and slight anger.

He had some nerve, now didn't he?

She watched herself disbelievingly realizing how stupid she looked like with that shirt buttoned up like that. She undid the buttons yet again, undoing one more just for fun's sake as it showed quite a pretty view of her chest before she grabbed some limes from the fridge and made in a fast pace six different cocktails. She got out of the room and returned to Benjamin's table with the drinks, trying to avoid Cloud's own table, getting away just fine, since he seemed too upset and too pissed off to notice.

In moments like this, she loved Yuffie's language and active self as she always seemed to annoy the shit out of Cloud each and every time she opened her mouth. Yes, that was pretty much it; Cloud was busy trying to give Yuffie a half as smart reply she managed to sneak past them.

"Tifa, sweetheart, that blond guy doesn't look too good… you think he had too much to drink?" one of the men sitting around the table, Derek, suspected.

Tifa only shook her head smiling refilling some of the empty glasses "Oh, he's not the type."

"You should check up on him, see if he's fine and shit." Benjamin's younger brother, she forgot his name, advised.

"I'm surely going to check up on him." She giggled. "Anything else I can get you guys?"

"No, sugar, that's enough for now. We'll give a shout if there's something else. Go have fun yourself!" Benjamin smiled.

"Don't mind if I do." The brunette cheered as she walked back towards Cloud's table.

"NO, YUFFIE, I WON'T WALK ON 7 INCH HEELS FOR YOU! SO SHUT UP ALREADY!" Cloud's voice echoed as he sent a poisonous glare towards the semi-scared young woman.

"Jesus, Cloud, calm down. It was just some very good advice." She complained as she wasn't expecting this kind of reaction. She only wanted to help him not to shit him up (um… okay, she had to admit she wanted to do both). "Being a transvestite won't be so bad… really Cloud, if you can't screw a girl at least try a guy."

Her innocent tone was what managed to make even Vincent smile and push Cloud off the edge. But just as he was about to raise his voice yet again he stopped in midair.

"Anything I can get you?" Tifa sweet voice corrupted him as she bended down, her onyx eyes capturing his sapphire ones, her elbows against the table.

He watched her mesmerized, tarring his gaze away from her gorgeous face and letting in liger from the neck down. He had no words to describe the view, only that she didn't seem to take in his advice regarding her shirt. He wouldn't admit it to no one, but he felt relieved she didn't since he loved what he saw.

"Neah, Teef, nothing for now. Maybe you can get Cloudy-boy here some help, he's so uptight and edgy lately." Yuffie smirked sending Tifa a friendly nod.

"Well, if I can't help you guys with anything, I should get back to work. So many people in tonight." She got up deciding to go back behind the bar to grab something to eat but stopped dead as she seemed to remember something.

She walked towards Cloud bending down to whisper something in his ear, meant only for him to hear.

"It's not polite to stare, you know." Her hot breath against his own skin made him shiver.

She smiled as she sent him one last gaze before disappearing behind the bar leaving a shocked Cloud behind.

When she was nowhere to be seen, Cloud swiftly got up excusing himself hurriedly. "You know where to find me. You'd better stay away, though." He ran behind the bar where only seconds ago Tifa had disappeared.

Youffie only smiled victoriously, Vince sighed tiredly.

"Ha, I win the bet, Vincey-darling! See, I told you! I told you he has hormones after all!"


End file.
